Target’s brand perception with women 18 – 34 has been damaged since its problem-plagued launch of a new discount line with upscale Italian designer Missoni two weeks ago.
Since Target’s web site crashed on the September 13th launch date, followed by announcements of delayed and canceled orders, perception scores measuring the retailer’s general impression and buzz have dropped significantly.
Extending Target’s perception troubles, are many Facebook and Twitter posts from disgruntled shoppers saying they’ll never shop at the chain again. While online postings may be prone to hyperbole, the consumer comments are not encouraging for the brand. Late last week, Target sent out e-mails to those who placed online orders saying deliveries would be delayed for at least a month. The recent news seems to have broken the momentum that the brand had been experiencing coming out of the back to school shopping season, where the same Buzz and Impression scores had approached the year to date highs for Target.
Target was measured using both YouGov BrandIndex’s Impression and Buzz scores. For Impression score, respondents are asked: "Do you have a general positive feeling about the brand?" For Buzz score, respondents were asked: "If you've heard anything about the brand in the last two weeks, through advertising, news or word of mouth, was it positive or negative?"
For Impression scores with females 18 - 34, Target fell from 82, the day the line went on sale, to its current 57. During the same period, Buzz dropped from 67 down to 39.
